Carbide welding

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I need to do some maintenance on my post hole auger.  Can carbide cutters be welded with a MIG?  If not, what process would be best?
Reply:Originally Posted by 7A749I'm no expert on it, but usually carbide is brazed to steel when it comes to cutting edges. That's how we done all our cutters in the shop.
Reply:I seriously doubt that carbide is on the cutting surface..It would just chip and snap in no time on a arbor...Use some Hardfacing Rod on it..They are black stick welding rods for excavator teeth and snowplow bottoms...Good stuff for heavy wear surfaces......zap!I am not completely insane..Some parts are missing Professional Driver on a closed course....Do not attempt.Just because I'm a  dumbass don't mean that you can be too.So DON'T try any of this **** l do at home.
Reply:Why do you doubt that carbide is used on an auger?Carbide is used on the tip of rotary hammer bits.  Those take serious impact into rock and concrete.  Auger tips don't get anywhere near this high impact abuse.
Reply:Originally Posted by rlitmanWhy do you doubt that carbide is used on an auger?Carbide is used on the tip of rotary hammer bits.  Those take serious impact into rock and concrete.  Auger tips don't get anywhere near this high impact abuse.
Reply:Actually, you can go to any Bobcat dealer, or Cat dealer, and find carbide cutting teeth.   If you have any apparatus, to drill holes, with a pressure downfeed, whether it's a skid-steer or just simply, pushing a three point auger down with a loader from behind, it's the only way to go.   Nothing else, can take the pressure, or the heat, and keep going for a meaningful amount of hours.I generally just go to the local Bobcat dealer, and buy the receptacles, weld them to the auger, install the first set of points, then tell the customer where to buy the correct replacement points in the future.   I suspect the carbides are brazed on, or silver-soldered.   In any case, not worth my time, both Cat and Bobcat can sell the points for cheaper, than I can make them, figuring finding the material, doing the work, and covering inventory costs.Last edited by jsfab; 11-25-2009 at 05:19 PM.
Reply:I did reply a bit ago, but it didn't show up.  Anyways, I am with JS.  I think it's Bobcat that has bolt on teeth too.  That's what I've used in the past.My name's not Jim....
Reply:They definitely are available with carbide tips.  It's the only thing that will cut through caliche or hardpan.  I only use the auger a couple of times a year and I usually hit the hard stuff.  They will even drill through rock.  Hardface will work but I thought that the carbide would be better.  Attached is a pic of one.They're about 30 bucks a pop and it takes 9 of them. Attached Images
Reply:Hey 983-over,The only method to attach pure carbide is with silver-solder. All machining tools/cutters that have a carbide cutter are attached with silver-solder. If you have cutter replacements that are steel with a carbide tip attached, then you could MIG weld them in place. If it's just the carbide, sil-sol is the only method you can use.DennyComplete Welding/Machine/Fab. ShopMobile UnitFinally retired*Moderator*"A man's word is his honor...without honor there is nothing.""Words are like bullets.... Once they leave your muzzle, you cannot get them back."
Reply:For making brazed lathe toolbits, special 'shims' are available which are three--layered material; silver solder outside and thin copper inside to allow for shrinkage differences between the carbide insert and the steel shank.I'd look in the silver solder catalogs to find which is recommended; not all are as good at wetting the carbide.I have used a sweat-on paste from Calmonoy on smaller digger points and cutters, with good success, and have used hard-surfacing rod too.
Reply:Originally Posted by 983-overThey're about 30 bucks a pop and it takes 9 of them.
Reply:the deep-rock well drilling company sells a product to recondition their drilling bits. its a mixture of granulated carbide,brazing granulles and flux. heat your steel red hot with a torch and dip it in the powder,reheat to complete the fusion.
Reply:Originally Posted by MrLeadMan9 teeth, what size auger? We build 24" augers and they carry 7 teeth. All the teeth I've ever seen were steel, have seen some small augers with a spade point. Carbide is tough stuff, forestry feller bunchers use 2" square carbide teeth mounted on a disk saw.Iscar makes some inserted tools for heavy cutting that are beastly. With enough lathe you can cut 750 thousandths at very high feed rates.
Reply:I used to attach carbides on all day long at work.  Flux with the all state white silversolder flux.  Flux both parts and stick together.  Use HIGH Temp sillver solder.  Notsil-foss used for plumbing- it is in flat sticks.  Use the stuff in the round coils that isabout .040 inch diammeter.   Cut a small piece and bend it arround to fit arround the perrimeter of the interface and "sitck" it in the flux which squeezed out.  Heat slowlyand watch for it to liquify and suck into the interface just below red heat.allways worked well for me !Tim
Reply:If you notice those tungsten carbide auger bits can be sharpened with a grinder?just did some 4" holes after the ground froze and can really feel the arthritus in my shoulder...anyhow they were bolted on weren't they, and you will notice that the tungsten drill bits you have get dull also but you don't see any tungsten carbide chunks because they are supperfine grainular forgings with steel.The only reason not to weld them is some day you may have to change them and because they are disimiliar metals it may crack.Might want to braze them on.Try it, it it doesn't work build the fluting up and bolt them in.A better solution is to see if you can get some tungsten carbide rods for oilfeild use on washover pipes and bits, they look like superlarge large brass/bronze rods with very chunky rocks imbedded in them, and you braze this onto your cutting surface and the chunks and alloy wear down to an even surface.If I was to resurface my own post auger this is what I would use.Maybe someone can post their composition.Can likely be used for hardsurfacing also.I used to run the lathe maching this stuff down to fit into the tool joints or over drill collars about 29 years ago, older welders would sit for hours on end building up the surface with brazing torches.So give it a try what do you have to lose.